The Call of Duty PC video game is fast, thrilling and story driven. This first-person shooter started life on the PC, before then being ported over to consoles and handheld gadgets. Call of Duty was released in 2003, it takes place during World War II, combining the tense atmosphere of foot soldier manoeuvres with engaging combined arms exercises.

When it was first launched, Call of Duty was unusual in the first-person shooter genre, as players were supported by a back-up team of computerised compatriots. These characters acted as part of your company and the unit could comprise of anything, from a couple of infantry soldiers to an entire squadron of tanks.

On each mission, players are drawn through many different sections of game play. You can drive vehicles, watch the dramatically rendered cut scenes and ensure you master a situation before moving on. A player’s health is measured on a health bar and a points system. When you’ve suffered severe damage and you need to boost your point’s level, just grab a few of the Medikits which litter each mission. Some are strategically placed to help you get through a particularly difficult section, whilst others can be picked up from dead bodies.

An interesting aspect of Call of Duty is the ‘shellshock’ feature, this replicates the feeling of confusion and disorientation a soldier endures if an explosion occurs nearby. Sounds are quieter, your movement is slowed and your vision becomes impaired, however, this only continues for a few moments.

The weapons which players use are authentic to the time period and easy to operate. Your basic kit will contain two primary weapons, a handgun and a maximum of ten grenades. The landscape is full of the discarded weapons of dead soldiers, so you can pick these up to replace the rounds you’ve already fired. You can use the keyboard to select a fire pattern, like automatic or single shot rounds. At certain junctures in the game, you come across structures and vehicles with mounted arms, like machine guns or grenade launchers, which are also player controlled.

In Call of Duty players take on the role of an infantry soldier to carry out various military objectives, only when each has been completed satisfactorily can you move on to the next section. Progress is made easier because the game allows you to save and load at any time, rather than using a checkpoint system. Another method of achieving greater success is to make full use of the surroundings as cover. You’ll find bombed out buildings, barricades and vehicles offer significant protection on a battlefield.

There’s no doubting that Call of Duty is a seminal game in the first-person shooter genre, but many players have complained about the rigidity of the game play. Although there is plenty going on in terms of the narrative, players have often felt that they were not called upon to make enough decisions, other than where to point and shoot. Nevertheless, despite being flanked by your allies, each player is in charge of meeting the objective in hand. Your comrades can only support you, they cannot change the outcome of an event.

Call of Duty has three separate sections of play, the American Campaign, The British Campaign and The Soviet Campaign, each of which is packed with numerous missions.